Copyright © 2007 by the Latin America Working Group Education Fund and the Washington Office on Latin America Latin America Working Group Education Fund (LAWGEF) 424 C Street, NE Washington, DC 20002 www.lawg.org Cuba e-alerts: www.lawg.org and click on e-alerts button Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) 1630 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 200 Washington, DC 20009 www.wola.org
Design by GO! Creative, llc Kensington, MD
To the memory of
Nestor Hernández Jr.
Photographer, teacher and friend
“Hope is everything.”
“La esperanza es todo.” — Arlene, page 28 Chantilly, VA/Camagüey
Contents
Foreword by Wayne S. Smith. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii Letters from Members of Congress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv A Note from the Authors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii U. S. Travel Restrictions Affecting Cuban Americans. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 The Cuban-American Family Divided. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Building a Policy to Restore “Family Values” and Freedom to Travel. . . . . . . . . . 3 Photographs and Narratives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Contributors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Endnotes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
“With the first embrace, we eliminated the distance between us.” Mario, page 18 Hialeah, FL/La Habana
Foreword Wayne S. Smith
Cuban families tend to be extremely close— even if physically divided by the Straits of Florida.
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cross the board, U.S. restrictions on travel to Cuba are an affront to the rights of American citizens. They are also counterproductive. We should be encouraging open travel to help create a free flow of ideas, not trying to wall Cuba off. But mistaken though they all are, it is the restrictions imposed in 2004 on the travel of Cuban Americans that have caused the most pain and human suffering. Cuban families tend to be extremely close—even if physically divided by the Straits of Florida. From the end of the ‘70s until 2004, Cuban Americans living in the United States could travel rather freely to Cuba. There was a general license on the books saying they could visit the island once a year. They were assumed to have permission to travel and did not have to apply for written approval. No one checked, so Cuban Americans had the flexibility to respond to family needs and crises the way all other American citizens did. This caused the United States no problems. Everyone was happy. Everyone, that is, except for a handful of hard-line Cuban Americans who have no need to visit their families because they have little or no family left in Cuba. This small group of hard-line exiles believes there should be no contact at all with the island as long as it is ruled by the Castro brothers. Though few (and declining) in number, they are big donors and therefore politically influential. They pressured the Bush Administration to impose more stringent controls. In June of 2004, it did.
Now Cuban Americans can only visit immediate family on the island and for no more than two weeks once every three years. And they must apply for a specific license to do even that. The Treasury Department defines who is and who is not an immediate family member. There’s no chance of visiting a cousin, even if you were raised together—and certainly not aunts or uncles. Worse, there are no more humanitarian exceptions for family illness or crisis. Thus, if, say, Maria visited her mother in June, but is then told in September that her mother is gravely ill, there is no way she can get an emergency license to be at her mother’s bedside; rather, she must wait another three years and then visit her mother’s grave. That is inhumane! Anyone who would pass such a measure is undeserving of respect. This collection of photos and narratives flows from an exhibit that has been traveling nationally since May 2006. Jeanne Parr Lemkau, David Strug, Nestor Hernández Jr. and Juan E. González López have captured the pain felt by thousands of Cuban-American families due to U.S. regulations. The narratives, based on interviews conducted by Lemkau and Strug, convey excellent insight into what these families experience. Separating families by restricting travel is unjust; the suffering inflicted on families, unbearable. This publication documents a dark moment in U.S. history and presents us with the moral imperative to seek a change in policy.
Wayne S. Smith is an Adjunct Professor at the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD, where he directs the Cuba Exchange Program, and a Senior Fellow at the Center for International Policy in Washington, DC. He was a U.S. foreign service officer for many years and headed the U.S diplomatic mission to Cuba from 1976 to 1981.
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A Note from the Authors We thank the Cuban Americans who shared their stories with us, some in circumstances where they risked possible retribution for doing so. We honor their courage and thank them for their trust.
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arly in 2005, we were drawn together by our shared concern about the mental health implications of new restrictions governing travel to Cuba by Cuban Americans. Six months earlier, the Bush Administration had approved and implemented regulations that drastically reduced the extent to which Cuban Americans could visit family members on the island. Although we had just met—both of us in Havana doing academic research—we decided to collaborate in a study of Cuban Americans separated from family members on the island. Our goal was to document how individual and family wellbeing were being affected by the new policies. Between June 2005 and April 2006, we conducted 53 in-depth interviews of Cuban Americans from families divided by the Florida Straits. Details of our methodology may be viewed in our publication listed in the endnotes.1 Interviews typically lasted an hour or more and were conducted in English or Spanish in interviewees’ homes or in private corners of public places. Following a semi-structured format, we asked about details of family history and relationships and explored the psychological and economic impact of the restrictions on the interviewees and their family members. We were stunned by the range and intensity of the personal stories that emerged. Once our research was underway, we asked for help from the Latin America Working Group Education Fund and the Washington Office on Latin America to extend our contacts with the Cuban-American community. On learning of our project, they suggested that we expand our work by developing a photography exhibit which, in combination with stories from our interviews, could be used for public education. We contacted photographer Nestor Hernández Jr., himself a Cuban American unable to visit Cuba under the new restrictions, and he readily agreed to donate his expertise. Unfortunately, before he could complete all of the photographs, Nestor became terminally ill and we were forced to seek the help of a second photographer. Multi-media artist Juan E. González López came to the rescue, sacrificing time at home with his new baby in order to help other families. Juan finished taking the photographs while respectfully conferring with Nestor to assure the integrity of the final collection. The narratives to accompany each photograph were drawn from our
interviews, representing–-to the best of our knowledge—the situations of these Cuban Americans at the time. The exhibit Love, Loss and Longing: The Impact of U.S. Travel Policy on Cuban-American Families opened on May 12, 2006, at the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, DC. Due to his worsening condition, Nestor Hernández Jr. was unable to attend; tragically, he died the next day. Since the Washington opening, the exhibit has traveled nationally and has shown in Arlington and Crystal City, Virginia; Baltimore, Maryland; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Yellow Springs, Ohio; Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Jackson Hole, Wyoming; Newark, New Jersey; Sacramento and Oakland, California; Chicago, Illinois; Cambridge, Massachusetts; New York, New York; and Miami, Florida Future showings are scheduled for Mobile, Alabama; Dayton, Ohio; and several cities in Illinois. We offer our heartfelt thanks to all who have supported our research, the development and tour of the exhibit and the writing of this publication. Neither the exhibit nor the book would have been possible without the financial contributions of the Christopher Reynolds Foundation, the Arca Foundation, Oxfam America, the Bruderhof Foundation, and dozens of private donors, many of whom also helped us make contacts with Cuban Americans. We offer special thanks to the Latin America Working Group Education Fund, the Washington Office on Latin America, the Cuban American Commission for Family Rights, the Alianza Martiana and the Cuban American Alliance Education Fund. Most of all, we thank the Cuban Americans who shared their stories with us, some in circumstances where they risked possible retribution for doing so. We honor their courage and thank them for their trust. We appreciate the hospitality they showed us by inviting us into their homes, generously offering us cafecitos and arroz con pollo, and helping us find our way from one Miami neighborhood to the next. We are in your debt.
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Cuban families tend to be extremely close—even if physically divided by the Straits of Florida.
U. S. Travel Restrictions Affecting Cuban Americans In 2004, President George W. Bush’s Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba recommended tightening the travel restrictions. Restricting the rights of U.S. citizens in the name of promoting rights and democracy elsewhere is duplicitous.
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n January 1961, two years after the Cuban Revolution ousted dictator Fulgencio Batista, the United States broke diplomatic relations with the island nation and declared that travel to Cuba by U.S. citizens was contrary to the goals of U.S. foreign policy.
The restrictions that went into effect in June 2004 include the following:
Travel restrictions were introduced that have been successively tightened and loosened under different U.S. presidents. Restrictions are enforced through the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), which prohibits U.S. citizens and permanent residents from spending money in Cuba without OFAC permission; since travel costs money, those who visit Cuba without OFAC permission can be fined for violating the regulations and could be subject to criminal prosecution under the Trading with the Enemy Act of 1917.
Humanitarian exceptions for response to family illness or crisis are no longer allowed;
There are exceptions to the travel ban. Since the 1970s, Cuban Americans have been allowed to visit family in Cuba under varying conditions. From 1995 through 2004, Cuban Americans were allowed to visit family once a year without applying for a license from OFAC and could apply for permission to travel more frequently in cases of humanitarian need. In 2004, President George W. Bush’s Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba recommended tightening the travel restrictions.2 The Commission argued that reducing family travel would decrease the amount of dollars entering Cuba and hasten the end of Fidel Castro’s government.
Visits by Cuban Americans to family in Cuba are permitted only once every three years instead of once every year;
Visits are restricted to two weeks and limited to immediate family as defined by OFAC, eliminating the right to visit cousins, aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, or more distant relatives; For all family visits, a written application for licensed travel must be submitted to OFAC and approved; The amount of money that may be spent during a family visit was decreased from $167 to $50 per day; The amount of money Cuban Americans may carry to Cuba to give to various relatives was decreased from $3,000 to $300; and remittances, not to exceed $300 per quarter, were limited to the immediate family as defined by OFAC. Restricting the rights of U.S. citizens in the name of promoting rights and democracy elsewhere is duplicitous. The Cuban Government is criticized regularly for its control over the movement of its people and suppression of freedom of expression. While many of these concerns are valid, this book is directed at the hypocrisy and cruelty of U.S. restrictions as they affect the travel of U.S. citizens.
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The Cuban-American Family Divided The reasons that Cuban Americans want to visit their family members are common to all families—–to express love, to fulfill their sense of what is right, to give and receive emotional support, to pay back debts of gratitude, to reconcile personal differences, and to consolidate their family and cultural identities. bout 1.5 million Cubans live in the United States.3 They comprise the third largest Hispanic group after Mexicans and Puerto Ricans. More than a third of these Cuban Americans were born in the United States.The vast majority of the rest emigrated from Cuba in one of four waves that have occurred since the revolution of 1959 that put Fidel Castro in power, their emigration variously motivated by political upheaval, the prospect of economic opportunity, and the desire to join family members already in the United States. Most Cuban Americans—whether born in the United States or in Cuba—still have close and extended family living on the island.4 Whether in Havana or Hialeah, the Cuban-American family shares a common culture, language and heritage.5 A dominant value in CubanAmerican families is familismo, the cultural attitude that places the interests of the family above those of the individual.6 Cuban Americans typically seek more frequent contact and communication with their relatives than do Anglo Americans.7 Respect for elders and deceased family members is highly valued, incurring obligations to care for sick and aging family members and to honor the deceased.
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Emigrants from Cuba are expected to maintain close contact with relatives on the island, to sustain a positive relationship with their country of origin, and to provide economic assistance to family and close friends left behind.8 Cuban Americans who grew up in Cuba tend to maintain strong connections with their parents after migration.9 Bonds of unity and loyalty characterize these families even when separated. Close ties of family obligation that bridge multiple generations and extend beyond narrow definitions of “family” are typical among Cuban Americans. Who is considered family is not determined by blood relations alone. Biologically distant relations—second cousins, great aunts, step-relatives and in-law relations—may be considered close kin. These relations may evoke strong norms of reciprocity and expectations of support. Similarly, neighbors and friends often represent “fictive kin”—long-term relationships of a family nature. 2
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The reasons that Cuban Americans want to visit their family members are common to all families—to express love, to fulfill their sense of what is right, to give and receive emotional support, to pay back debts of gratitude, to reconcile personal differences, and to consolidate their family and cultural identities. But the experience of Cuban-American families is also unique because of the politically-charged environment in which emigration has taken place. Profound losses and separations within these families have occurred in a divisive political context. As Bernal and Shapiro have written, “the story of the Cuban-American family experience must be told as an intergenerational narrative of love, loyalty and longing, within which memory is a highly contested political territory.”10 The tensions around family ethics and loyalty obligations that characterize relationships within Cuban-American families splintered by geographic separation have been compounded by intra-familial political conflicts that continue to evolve over years. Contact between Cuban Americans and their family members in Cuba creates critical opportunities for reconciliation and restored family unity. Travel across the Florida Straits has helped CubanAmerican families mend relationships between those who emigrated and those who stayed in Cuba, confront and grieve their losses, and strengthen their connections with their culture of origin. Contact fosters the reintegration of Cuban families which have been painfully divided and promotes the maintenance of the intergenerational relationships that are the essence of Cuban-American family life. When face-to-face contact is denied or the barriers to contact become too burdensome, family dislocations become permanent; and the web of care and reciprocity that strengthens relationships becomes frayed—to the detriment of family members in both the United States and Cuba. The stories that accompany the photographs on the following pages were drawn from in-depth interviews of Cuban Americans separated from family members in Cuba. Quotes were edited and condensed for brevity and clarity.
Building a Policy to Restore Family Values and Freedom to Travel By preventing people from freely responding to the needs of their family members, U.S. policies cause unnecessary suffering, violate the human rights of American citizens, and contradict the fundamental mandate of public health—–to prevent harm whenever possible. trong families are fundamental to a healthy society, and the
Sproper role of government is to support families as they provide
nurture and care across the life cycle and across generations.
The stories shared by the Cuban Americans who appear in this book illustrate the myriad negative effects that are inflicted by the current U.S. restrictions on travel. They keep Cuban Americans from visiting sick or dying family members and from attending the weddings, funerals and special birthdays that mark transitions of the family life cycle. They block opportunities for face-to-face reconciliation among family members divided by geography and politics. And by narrowly and ethnocentrically defining “family” eligible for legal visitation, the U.S government violates the concept of American family values, ignores how Cuban Americans define their kin, and severely limits their ability to honor their relations and maintain family networks. By preventing people from freely responding to the needs of their family members, U.S. policies cause unnecessary suffering, violate the human rights of American citizens,11 and contradict the fundamental mandate of public health—to prevent harm whenever possible. The restrictions that so egregiously affect Cuban-American families are part of a larger policy that restricts, and in most cases prohibits, contact and dialogue between U.S. citizens and Cubans. Severe prohibitions affect trade, academic exchange, and religious and humanitarian travel, and limit the ability of ordinary Americans to
learn about Cuban life and culture. The policy on travel seeks to promote rapid political transition in Cuba through strengthening the 46-year-old U.S. embargo on Cuba, which is largely regarded as a failure. There are real criticisms to be made of Cuba’s restrictions on freedom of speech and freedom of association, and governments committed to international respect for human rights ought to encourage Cuba to change its practices. But a U.S. policy that seeks to impose a specific political agenda on a sovereign nation is arrogant, misguided, and doomed to failure. The embargo has only succeeded in exacting significant costs from the Cuban people, Cuban Americans, and U.S. citizens in general. Freedom to travel to Cuba is essential for restoring the rights of U.S. citizens and providing a healthy exchange of ideas on the island. Bipartisan political action is imperative if the travel ban is to be lifted. Contact your senators and representative in Congress and let them know you support the right of all Americans to travel to Cuba. The organizations listed below can guide you in steps that individuals and communities can take to end the travel ban for Cuban Americans and all U.S. citizens.
Latin America Working Group Web: www.lawg.org, Cuba policy updates: Go to www.lawg.org and click on e-alerts button. Email:
[email protected], Phone: 202 546-7010
Washington Office on Latin America Web: www.wola.org, Email:
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Mar a del Carmen, 57 Seamstress and santeria priestess/Costurera y santera Tampa, FL/La Habana aría’s family has been criss-crossing the Florida Straits
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her grandchildren or assume the added burden of participating
since the 1800s when the countries were linked in the
in a licensed religious mission that assures legal travel. Sending
production of Cuban cigars. María came to the United States in
material aid has become more expensive and complicated.
1993 to visit her sister and decided to stay. Her oldest son, two
She limits phone contact with her family because each call
grandchildren and a sister still live in Cuba.
costs $1 a minute.
María works hard to make ends meet. She saved enough money
“The restrictions … will not change the system there. They
to visit her family in Cuba six times between 1997 and 2004.
simply make us suffer—those on this side and those on that
She sends them what she can.
side. We are like a sandwich—on one side the American
The tightened restrictions burden María financially and emotionally. Now she is forced to miss years in the lives of
government and the Cuban government on the other. We get pressed in the middle.”
Squeezed between governments
Exprimida entre los gobiernos
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a familia de María ha estado cruzando los estrechos de la
Las restricciones endurecidas desgastan a María financiera y
Florida desde los años 1800s cuando los países estaban
emocionalmente. Ahora está obligada a ausentarse durante
conectados en la producción de los puros cubanos. María vino a
muchos años de la vida de sus nietos o asumir el costo agregado
los Estados Unidos en 1993 para visitar a su hermana y decidió
de viajar con una misión religiosa licenciada que asegure su viaje
quedarse. Su hijo mayor, dos nietos y su hermana todavía viven
legal. El envío de ayuda material ha llegado a ser más caro y
en Cuba.
complicado. Limita contactos telefónicos con su familia porque
María trabaja duro para lograr metas. Ahorró suficiente dinero
cada llamada cuesta un dólar el minuto.
para visitar a su familia en Cuba seis veces entre 1997 y 2004.
“Las restricciones… no van a cambiar el sistema allá.
Les envía a ellos lo que puede.
Simplemente nos hacen sufrir—ésos en este lado y aquéllos en aquel lado. Somos como un sándwich—por un lado el gobierno americano y por otro lado el gobierno cubano. Nos exprimen en medio.”
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“The restrictions …
will not change the system there.”
Carlos, 41 Sergeant combat medic/Sargento combatiente médico Seattle, WA/La Habana arlos arrived on U.S. shores by raft in 1992 leaving his two
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new restrictions were about to go into effect. He was denied
young sons behind with their mother. Once employed in the
permission to go and had to return to military service in Iraq
United States, he regularly sent money to Cuba for their
without seeing his sons. Subsequently, he served in the bloody
support. From 1994 until 2003 he visited his sons every year.
battle for Fallujah and was awarded a bronze star.
In the wake of 9/11, Carlos volunteered for the National
He doesn’t understand how the country for which he has risked
Guard. He was deployed to Iraq where he served as a combat
his life could forbid him from seeing his children. “If I had lost
medic, attending to Iraqi prisoners and providing backup for
my life in Iraq without being able to see my boys again, it
U.S. troops.
wouldn’t have been because of the war, it would have been
Naturally, Carlos was eager to see his sons during his military leaves. He did so in 2003. But in June 2004, when he arrived
because my Commander in Chief wouldn’t let me see them when I was able to!”
at the Miami airport to make his annual trip, he was told that
Fighting in Iraq while losing his freedom
Lucha en Irak mientras pierde su libertad
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arlos llegó a las costas de los Estados Unidos en una balsa
2004 cuando llegó al aeropuerto de Miami para hacer su viaje
en 1992 dejando a sus dos hijos menores con su madre
anual, le dijeron que las restricciones nuevas estaban a punto de
en su país. Una vez que fue empleado en los Estados Unidos,
entrar en vigor. Se le negó el permiso de ir y tuvo que regresar
regularmente mandaba dinero a Cuba para su apoyo. De 1994
al servicio militar sin ver a sus hijos. Posteriormente, sirvió en
hasta 2003 visitó a sus hijos cada año.
la batalla de Fallujah y se le premió con la estrella de bronce.
En el despertar del 11 de septiembre, Carlos se fue de
No entiende por qué el país por lo cual ha arriesgado su vida
voluntario para la Guardia Nacional. Fue enviado a Irak donde
podía prohibirle visitar a sus hijos. “¡Si hubiera perdido mi vida
sirvió como combatiente médico, asistiendo a los prisioneros
en Irak sin haber visto a mis hijos, no habría sido por la guerra,
de Irak y proveyendo apoyo para las tropas estadounidenses.
habría sido por mi comandante en jefe que no me hubiera
Naturalmente, Carlos estaba ansioso de ver a sus hijos durante sus licencias militares. Lo hizo en el 2003. Pero en junio de
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permitido verles cuando podía!”
Marisela, 54 Owner of travel agency/Dueña de agencia de viajes Hialeah, FL/La Habana hen Marisela emigrated to the U.S. in 1992, she left her
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were not family. She was forbidden to send diapers because
parents and sister in Cojimar. She planned to help them
they were not “medicine.” She was forbidden to visit for three
join her when she became established, but plans changed when
years since she had just seen him. Deprived of care and unable
both her mother and father developed Alzheimer’s. Marisela’s
to understand, Pipo despaired. After six months of not seeing
sister, who was caring for their parents, died unexpectedly; and
his daughter, he died.
then her mother fell and broke her hip. Marisela traveled legally to Cuba and cared for her mother until she died.
Marisela’s grief is mixed with rage. “In less than three years, my sister, my mother, and my father have been buried in Cuba.
Marisela was left to arrange her father’s care. She hired round-
I came to this country in pursuit of freedom! How is it that
the-clock help so “Pipo” could stay at home. She sent diapers and
I can’t follow through on something so simple as visiting my
medicine and visited him many times each year, always legally.
father’s grave?”
In June 2004, the restrictions were tightened. She was forbidden to send money to his caretakers because they
Forced to abandon father
Forzada abandonar a su padre
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uando Marisela emigró a los Estados Unidos en 1992,
En junio del 2004, las restricciones las hicieron más estrictas.
ella dejó a sus padres y hermana en Cojímar. Ella planeó
A ella se le prohibió enviar dinero a los cuidadores porque no
ayudarlos para que se reunieran con ella cuando se estableciera,
eran de la familia. Se le prohibió mandar pañales porque no eran
pero estos planes cambiaron cuando su madre y padre se
“medicina.” Se le prohibió visitar durante tres años puesto que lo
enfermaron de Alzheimer’s. La hermana de Marisela, quien
acababa de ver. Privado de cuidado y sin poder entender, Pipo se
cuidaba de sus padres, se murió inesperadamente y luego la
desesperó. Después de seis meses de no ver a su hija, se murió.
madre se cayó y se quebró la cadera. Marisela viajó legalmente a Cuba y cuidó a su madre hasta que se murió.
El dolor de Marisela esta mezclado con rabia. “En menos de tres años, mi hermana, mi madre y mi padre fueron enterados en
Marisela tuvo que arreglar el cuidado de su padre. Contrató a una
Cuba. Vine a este país en búsqueda de la libertad. ¿Cómo es
persona las 24 horas al día para que “Pipo” pudiera quedarse en
que ni siquiera puedo hacer algo tan simple como visitar la
casa. Mandaba pañales y medicina y lo visitaba muchas veces al
tumba de mi padre?”
año, siempre legalmente.
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“In less than three years, my sister, my mother, and my father have been buried in Cuba.”
Jorge, 42 Medical technician/Técnico de medicina Tampa, FL/Marianao hen Jorge was a boy in Marianao, Uncle Pichardo was
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his homeland, he was overwhelmed by the sweetness of their
like a second father. Pichardo picked him up after school
reunion. Jorge started visiting Pichardo once or twice each year.
each day. Every evening he brought candy home, dividing the
On his last visit, in 2003, he learned that his uncle had cancer.
pieces equally among his children and his brothers.
Jorge assured him that he would visit again soon; “Whenever
One afternoon in 1971, when Pichardo came by with treats
you need me, I will come.”
to share, he found a padlock on the door of his brother’s home.
Then the regulations changed. Jorge couldn’t fulfill his promise.
When the neighbor told him that his brother’s family had left
And he couldn’t bring himself to tell Pichardo why. “How could
suddenly that morning for the United States, Pichardo became
I tell my uncle that he just wasn’t important enough—that he
so upset that he threw the candy to the ground.
wasn’t family?” Uncle Pichardo died, asking “Is Jorge here yet?”
Jorge was 11 when his father took him out of Cuba. He never forgot Uncle Pichardo. Thirty years later when he returned to
Forced to break promise
Forzado a romper la promesa
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uando Jorge era un niño en Marianao, el tío Pichardo era
patria, se sintió abrumado por la dulzura del encuentro. Jorge
como un segundo padre. Pichardo le recogía cada día de la
empezó a visitar a Pichardo una o dos veces cada año. En su
escuela. Todas las noches traía dulces a casa, dividiendo los
última visita, en 2003, supo que su tío había contraído cáncer.
pedazos por igual entre sus hijos y los de su hermano.
Jorge le aseguró que le visitaría pronto; “Cuando quiera que
Una tarde en 1971, cuando Pichardo vino a compartir las
tú me necesites, vendré.”
golosinas, encontró un candado en la puerta de la casa de su
Entonces las regulaciones cambiaron. Jorge no pudo cumplir
hermano. Cuando su vecino le dijo que la familia de su hermano
con su promesa y no pudo estar presente con Pichardo para
se había marchado de repente para los Estados Unidos, Pichardo
decirle por qué. “¿Cómo le iba a decir a mi tío que no era
se disgustó tanto que tiró los dulces en el suelo.
tan importante, que no era familia?” El tío Pichardo murió,
Jorge tenía 11 años cuando su padre le sacó de Cuba. Nunca olvidó al tío Pichardo. Treinta años después cuando regresó a su
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preguntando: “¿Ya llegó Jorge?”
“How could I tell my uncle that he…wasn’t family?”
Marietta, 48 Dancer and teacher/Bailarina y maestra New York, NY/Placetas uba felt too small for Marietta. Trained as a musician, she
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She returned and found sisters ready to reconcile and a Cuba
longed for the freedom to explore the world beyond the
that welcomed her. She began to visit regularly and to renew
limits of her homeland. At 21, she emigrated to the United
her knowledge of Cuban dance. She led educational tours
States on the Mariel boatlift, leaving family behind.
that helped support the Latin American Folk Institute.
For years she worked low-wage jobs. At times she was home-
Marietta is enraged by the travel restrictions which limit her
less. “I had a wig and a K-Mart dress and slept on the beach;
contact with her 84-year-old father and impede exchange with
people didn’t know.” Returning to Cuba to visit wasn’t an
Cuban artists. She came to the United States for freedom.
option—money was scarce. Besides, her sisters shunned her
Now she contemplates moving abroad.
as a traitor. Eleven years after Marietta’s departure, her mother died suddenly. Marietta felt compelled to see her family.
No freedom in the land of liberty
No hay libertad en la tierra de la libertad
C
uba se le hizo muy pequeña a Marietta. Entrenada como
Regresó y encontró que las hermanas estaban listas para
músico, ansiaba libertad para explorar el mundo más allá de
reconciliarse y a una Cuba que le daba la bienvenida. Empezó a
los límites de su tierra natal. A los 21 años, emigró a los Estados
visitar regularmente y renovar su conocimiento del baile cubano.
Unidos en el embarque de Mariel, dejando a su familia atrás.
Lidió viajes de turismo educacionales que ayudaron a apoyar al
Por años trabajó recibiendo salarios bajos. A veces no tenía casa.
Instituto de Folklore Latinoamericano.
“Tenía una peluca y un vestido de K-Mart y dormía en la playa;
Marietta está enfurecida por las restricciones de viaje que limitan
la gente no sabía.” Regresar a Cuba para visitar no era una
su contacto con su padre de 84 años y le impiden el intercambio
opción—el dinero estaba escaso. Además, sus hermanas la
con los artistas cubanos. Vino a los Estados Unidos por la
habían marcado como una traidora.
libertad. Ahora contempla mudarse al extranjero.
Once años después de la salida de Marietta, su madre se murió repentinamente. Marietta se sintió obligada a ver a su familia.
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“I had a wig and a K-Mart dress and
slept on the beach; people didn’t know.”
Javier, 47 Chemist/Químico Westmont, NJ/La Habana hen Javier visited Cuba in 2003, he didn’t know what
W
Back in New Jersey and surrounded by his photographs of Cuba,
to expect. He hadn’t been back since emigrating with
Javier began planning another trip for 2004. He hoped to travel
his family when he was 8. Javier wanted to see his homeland
to Sagua la Grande and find the house where his grandfather
even though he had no close family there.
was born. He hoped to locate descendants of his great uncle
Cuba took him by surprise. He visited the house in El Vedado where he was born and the church where his parents were
still living in that area. Travel restrictions kept him from making the hoped-for trip.
married. He found his grandmother’s house in Miramar and was
“I am angry and frustrated. It is a violation of my human rights
flooded with warm memories. He became reacquainted with
to prevent me from seeing my family. Cuba is the country
family friends and distant relatives. “All of the faded memories
where I was born; this is my heritage. What does this say
of my childhood came back to life. It was like finding the
about my freedom as an American citizen?”
pieces of a puzzle that had been missing for a long time.”
“A violation of my human rights” “Una violación de mis derechos humanos”
C
uando Javier visitó a Cuba en 2003, no sabía que esperar.
De regreso en New Jersey rodeado de sus fotografías de Cuba,
No había regresado allá desde que emigró con su familia
Javier empezó a planear otro viaje en 2004. Esperaba viajar
cuando tenía 8 años. Javier quería ver su patria aunque no
a Sagua la Grande y encontrar la casa donde su abuelo nació.
tuviera ninguna familia cercana allí.
Anhelaba encontrar descendientes de su tío abuelo que todavía
Cuba le sorprendió. Visitó la casa en el Vedado donde nació y la iglesia donde sus padres se casaron. Encontró la casa de su
vivieran en aquella área. Las restricciones le impidieron hacer el viaje anhelado.
abuela en Miramar y se sintió inundado de recuerdos acogedores.
“Estoy enojado y frustrado. Esto es una violación de mis
Llegó a reconectarse con los amigos de la familia y parientes
derechos humanos, de prevenirme ver a mi familia. Cuba es
lejanos. “Todos los recuerdos esfumados de mi infancia
el país donde nací; éste es mi legado. ¿Qué dice esto de mi
revivieron. Era como encontrar los pedazos de un
libertad como un ciudadano americano?”
rompecabezas que se habían extraviado por un largo tiempo.”
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“A ll of the faded memories
of my childhood came back to life.”
Aidil, 29 Law student/Estudiante de leyes West New York, NJ/La Habana idil is an only child. When she was three, she emigrated
A
visitation. Even as she grieved the new separation from her own
from Cuba with her parents, leaving seven aunts and uncles
family, she resolved to work on behalf of others. She entered
and numerous cousins behind. For nineteen years her contact
law school in 2005 and plans to use her legal training to fight
with her family on the island was through letters, phone calls,
for the rights of all Cuban Americans.
and shared photographs.
“I think about all the people I know who have children, parents,
In 1998, Aidil returned to Havana and was reunited with
siblings and aunts in Cuba, and about my own mother whose
the uncles, aunts, and cousins who had treasured her letters
brother died there before she could say goodbye. We should
and memories of her as a child. “For the first time in my life,
all be able to visit family whenever we want or need to….
I belonged. I really belonged. I had never had that sense
Some day it will seem preposterous to anyone that the
before. I was home.”
U.S. government ever devised such restrictions.”
Aidil visited her family in Cuba every year thereafter until the 2004 restrictions defined her relatives as ineligible for legal
A
So many families affected
Demasiadas familias afectadas
idil es hija única. Cuando tenía tres años, emigró de
parientes como ilegibles para una visita legal. A pesar de que ella
Cuba con sus padres, dejando siete tías y tíos y bastantes
se afligió por la separación de su propia familia, resolvió trabajar
primos allá. Por diecinueve años su contacto con su familia en
en apoyo a otros. Ingresó en la escuela de abogados en el año
la isla era a través de cartas, llamadas telefónicas, y fotografías
2005 y planea usar su entrenamiento legal para pelear por los
compartidas.
derechos de los cubanoamericanos.
En 1988, Aidil regresó a la Habana y se reunió con sus tíos y
“Pienso en toda la gente que conozco y quien tiene hijos,
primos quienes habían atesorado sus cartas y recuerdos de su
padres, hermanos y tías en Cuba, y mi propia madre que se
niñez. “Por primera vez en mi vida, pertenezco, verdadera-
le murió su hermano allí antes de que pudiera decirle adiós.
mente pertenezco. Nunca había tenido ese sentido antes.
Nosotros debemos todos poder visitar a la familia cuando
Estaba en casa.”
queramos o necesitemos ir… Algún día le va a parecer ridículo
Aidil visitó a su familia en Cuba cada año desde aquel momento hasta el año 2004 que las restricciones definieron a sus
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a cualquier persona que el gobierno de los Estados Unidos haya ideado tales restricciones.”
“For the first time in my life, I belonged.”
Mario, 63 Owner of travel agency/Dueño de agencia de viajes Hialeah, FL/La Habana ario came to the United States with his second wife in
M
Under the new restrictions, Mario is forbidden to visit his son
1992. The most painful part of leaving Cuba was the
or to meet his grandson before three years have passed. Mario
separation from family left behind. His only child, a blind son also
could petition for his son and his family to join him in the United
named Mario, stayed in Havana with his mother. Now he is 35,
States but then he would lose his excellent job and his access to
married, and a computer professional for the City of Havana
much needed medical and social services in Cuba. Mario longs
library. Recently he became the proud father of Mario senior’s
to visit him and meet his only grandson. He feels ashamed that
first grandchild. The new baby is named Mario, too.
he doesn’t have the courage to violate the restrictions and
The eldest Mario used to visit his son several times a year,
wonders,”What does it mean to be a good father?”
helping him with home repairs and other tasks around the house. “With the first embrace, we eliminated the distance between us.”
Kept from disabled son and first grandchild
Separado de su hijo invalido y su primer nieto
M
ario vino a los Estados Unidos con su segunda esposa
Bajo las nuevas restricciones, a Mario le prohíben ir a visitar a su
en 1992. La parte más dolorosa de dejar Cuba fue la
hijo o ir a conocer a su nieto antes que hayan pasado tres años.
separación de su familia que dejó atrás. Su hijo único, un hijo
Mario podría poner una petición por su hijo y su familia para que
ciego que también se llamaba Mario, se quedó en la Habana con
se reunieran con él en los Estados Unidos, pero él perdería su
su madre. Ahora tiene 35 años, está casado, y es un profesional
excelente trabajo y su acceso a la medicina y servicios que
en computaciones para la biblioteca de la ciudad de la Habana.
necesita en Cuba. Mario añora visitarlo y conocer a su único
Recientemente se convirtió en el orgulloso padre del primer
nieto. Él se siente avergonzado que no tiene el valor de
nieto de Mario Papá. Al nuevo bebé también lo nombraron Mario.
violar las restricciones y se pregunta, “¿Qué significa ser
Mario el mayor solía visitar a su hijo muchas veces al año, ayudándolo a reparar la casa y otros quehaceres del hogar. “Con el primer abrazo eliminábamos la distancia entre nosotros.”
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un buen padre?”
“W ith the first embrace, we eliminated the distance between us.”
Mari, 58 Minister/Ministra Washington, DC/La Habana
F
or 45 years, Mari has not returned to Cuba. Until recently
without hope of reconciliation. Her father died, then her uncle.
she didn’t want to. Now that she does, her government
Her mother emigrated. Mari lost touch with her cousins.
says no.
Then two years ago, Mari was given the e-mail address of a lost
At 13, Mari’s parents sent her to live with her aunt in the United
cousin. The network of cousins began to heal the wounds of
States, fearing that her opposition to the revolution would bring
estrangement through e-mails and phone calls. Now Mari is
her harm in Cuba. Like other Peter Pan exiles, she thought the
eager to reconcile with her cousins face-to-face and to meet
Communist regime would soon fall and that her family would be
their spouses and children. She is finally ready to visit Cuba.
reunited. But the regime did not fall and her family was fractured
But cousins aren’t eligible for family visits.
by conflict. When Mari left Cuba, the uncle and cousins with whom she had shared every Sunday dinner of her childhood saw her and her parents as traitors to the revolution. Years passed
“What are the real family values,” Mari asks, “when we keep families away from each other?”
“ What are the real family values?” “¿Qué son los valores reales de la familia?”
P
or 45 años, Mari no ha regresado a Cuba. Aún reciente-
Su padre murió, luego su tío. Su madre emigró. Mari perdió
mente no quería hacerlo. Ahora que lo quiere hacer, su
contacto con sus primos.
gobierno dice que no.
Entonces hace dos años a Mari le fue dada la dirección de
A los 13 años sus padres la enviaron a vivir con su tía en los
un primo perdido. La red de primos empezó a sanar las heridas
Estados Unidos teniendo miedo que su oposición a la revolución
del extrañamiento a través de correos electrónicos y llamadas
le haría daño en Cuba. Como otros Pedro Pan exiliados pensó
telefónicas. Ahora Mari está ansiosa de reconciliarse cara a
que el régimen comunista pronto caería y que su familia estaría
cara con sus primos y reunirse con sus esposas y sus hijos.
reunida. Pero el régimen no cayó y su familia fue fracturada por
Finalmente, está lista para visitar a Cuba. Pero los primos no
el conflicto. Cuando Mari salió de Cuba, el tío y los primos, con
son elegibles para visitas de familia.
quienes había compartido la comida cada domingo de su infancia, la vieron a ella y a sus padres como traidores de la revolución. Los años pasaron sin ninguna esperanza de reconciliación.
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“¿Qué son los valores reales de la familia,” Mari se pregunta, “cuando separamos los miembros de las familias del uno al otro?”
Nestor Sr., 74 Upholsterer/Tapicero Hyattsville, MD/La Habana estor Sr. left Cuba more than 50 years ago hoping for a
N
Vicente traveled to Los Pinos with his father and discovered
better life in the United States. He was 20. He settled
that his Cuban family was larger than his family at home. Playing
in Washington, married and raised six children. Nestor Jr.,
with cousins on the streets of Havana he felt safer than on the
photographer for this book, was his oldest son. Vicente, who
streets of Washington. After his trip he started asking more
is pictured here, is his youngest.
about his father’s homeland and began referring to himself
Nestor Jr. was 18 when he traveled to Cuba and arrived unan-
as Cuban.
nounced on his grandmother’s doorstep in Los Pinos. With the
Under the restrictions neither Nestor Jr. nor Vicente could
embrace of his father’s relatives, he felt he had “come home.”
return to Cuba—ever. Their grandmother is deceased and their
Between 1978 and 2003, he made over 20 trips to Cuba,
cousins aren’t eligible for visits as “family.”
visiting family, exploring far corners of the island with his camera, and organizing workshops and exhibitions with North American and Cuban photographers.
Nestor Sr. wonders, “When I die who will take my ashes to Cuba if my sons can’t go?”
“Who will take my ashes to Cuba?” “¿Quién llevará mis cenizas a Cuba?”
N
estor Padre dejó Cuba hace más de 50 años para una vida
Vicente viajó a Los Pinos con su padre y descubrió que su familia
mejor en los Estados Unidos. Tenía 20 años. Radicó en
en Cuba era más grande que su familia en casa. Jugando con
Washington, se casó y crió a seis hijos. Nestor Hijo, fotógrafo
sus primos en la calles de la Habana se sintió más seguro que
para este libro, era su hijo mayor. Vicente quien aparece en
en las calles de Washington. Después de su viaje, empezó a
esta fotografía es el más joven.
preguntar más acerca de la patria de su padre y empezó
Nestor Hijo tenía 18 años cuando viajó a Cuba y llegó sin
a identificarse como cubano.
anunciarse a la puerta de la casa de su abuela en Los Pinos.
Bajo las restricciones, ni Nestor Hijo ni Vicente pueden volver
Con el abrazo de los parientes del lado paterno se sintió que
a Cuba—jamás. Su abuela falleció y sus primos no califican
había “llegado a casa.” Entre 1978 y 2003 el hizo más de 20
como “familia” que se permite visitar.
viajes a Cuba, visitando a su familia, explorando los rincones de la isla con su cámara, y organizando talleres y exhibiciones con fotógrafos estadounidenses y cubanos.
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Nestor Padre se pregunta, “Cuándo yo muera, ¿Quién va a llevar mis cenizas a Cuba si mis hijos no pueden ir?”
Silvia, 59 Community educator/Educadora de la comunidad Miami, FL/La Habana ilvia’s playground as a child was the Havana Yacht Club.
S
sharing her prosperity with her “child” in Cuba, her second cousin
Her grandfather was the vice president of U. S. Standard
Rafael. She used to visit him several times a year on educational
Oil in Cuba.
and family licenses, helping him repair his house and supporting
Her family supported the Cuban revolution but quickly became disillusioned. When her grandfather learned about a program
him after the death of his baby. Now she has no legal right to visit Rafael or send material support.
to send children out of the country to save them from “commu-
“When I see everything my kids have and how successful
nism,” Silvia became a Peter Pan exile. Most of her family
they have been, I wish the same opportunities for Rafael. No
joined her in the United States within the year.
government has the right to keep families from nourishing and
Silvia married a physician and they have five grown children. She lives very comfortably. But the restrictions keep her from
helping each other. In that respect, I feel it is my right to visit Cuba whenever I want to—all Cubans are my family.”
“All Cubans are my family” “Todos los cubanos son mi familia”
C
uando era niña el patio de recreo de Silvia era el Club de
Ella solía visitarlo bastantes veces al año en licencias educativas
Yates de la Habana. Su abuelo era el vice-presidente de la
y religiosas, ayudándole a reparar su casa y apoyándolo después de la muerte de su bebé. Ahora no tiene derecho legal para
U.S. Standard Oil en Cuba. Su familia apoyó la revolución cubana pero rápidamente llegó
visitar a Rafael o mandarle apoyo material.
a desilusionarse. Cuando su abuelo supo del programa mandó a
“Cuando veo todo lo que mis hijos tienen y que exitosos ellos
sus hijos fuera del país para salvarlos del “comunismo,” Silvia llegó
han sido, deseo las mismas oportunidades para Rafael. Ningún
a ser un exiliado Pedro Pan. La mayoría de su familia se reunió
gobierno tiene el derecho de impedir que las familias se
con ella en los Estados Unidos dentro del año.
alimenten y se ayuden los unos a los otros. En esa estimación,
Silvia se casó con un doctor y tienen cinco hijos grandes. Vive muy cómodamente. Pero las restricciones le impiden compartir su prosperidad con su “hijo” en Cuba, su primo segundo Rafael.
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siento que es mi derecho visitar a Cuba cuando quiera porque todos los cubanos son mi familia.”
“No government has the right to keep families from nourishing and helping each other.”
Juan, 47 Visual artist/Artista visual Yellow Springs, OH/Santiago de Cuba ulled between two countries, two languages, and two
P
Juan is eligible to apply for another visit and has struggled with
versions of “home,” Juan identifies with the hyphen in
the best use of the one trip rationed to him for a three-year
Cuban-American. His parents, sister, and nieces live in Pinar del
span. Last year, his father became seriously ill and required
Rio while he and his wife live in Ohio with their baby—Camila,
surgery. At the same time Juan’s wife was pregnant with their
named after the Cuban hero Camilo Cienfuegos.
first child. Forced to make a difficult choice, he gambled that his
In 1992, Juan chose exile in the United States rather than the prospect of imprisonment in Cuba for his role as an artist in
father would weather the surgery and decided to visit his parents after the baby was born. Thankfully his father recovered.
the human rights movement. It was eleven years before Cuba
Having fought for human rights in Cuba, Juan considers his
allowed him to go back. He returned to visit his family in 2002.
situation ironic. “Now the United States is violating my rights. I have no choice but to become a dissident again.”
Difficult choices
Decisiones difíciles
D
ividido entre dos países, dos lenguas y dos versiones de
Juan es elegible para otro viaje que le está permitido dentro de
“hogar”, Juan se identifica con el guión entre ser cubano
ese periodo de tres años y ha luchado para usarlo de la mejor
y americano. Sus padres, una hermana y sus sobrinas viven en
manera posible. El año pasado su papá estuvo gravemente
Pinar del Río, mientras él y su esposa Paloma viven en Ohio
enfermo y requirió cirugía. Al mismo tiempo, su esposa estaba
con su bebe—Camila, nombrada por el héroe cubano Camilo
embarazada con su primera hija. Forzado a hacer una decisión
Cienfuegos.
difícil, Juan apostó que su papá iba a sobrevivir ese momento
En 1992, Juan eligió el exilio en los Estados Unidos en vez de la posibilidad del encarcelamiento en Cuba por su papel como
y decidió visitar a sus padres después de que naciera la bebé. Afortunadamente su papá se recuperó.
artista vinculado al movimiento de derechos humanos. Estuvo
Después de haber trabajado a favor de los derechos humanos
once años antes de que Cuba lo dejara regresar. Finalmente
en Cuba, Juan considera su situación muy irónica. “Ahora es la
volvió a visitar a su familia en 2002.
negación de mis derechos en los Estados Unidos. No tengo otra salida que volver a ser un disidente.”
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“Now the United States is violating my rights.”
Arlene, 51 Software company executive/Ejecutiva de una compañía de software Chantilly, VA/Camagüey ene (left), her aunt Arlene (right), and her mother
L
Cuban government would allow Arlene to visit Cuba. Between
Jacquelín (in the small photo) share the joys of their
1979 and 2004, Arlene visited Jacquelín in Cuba every year
unusually close family. They also share the pain of separation.
but one. After each visit, Jacquelín became depressed, but the
Lene—named for her aunt—lives with Arlene while studying
sisters took comfort in planning their next reunion, just a year
to become a teacher. Her mother, Arlene’s only sister, remains
away. “Hope was everything,” Arlene explains. “Now, with the
in Cuba.
new restrictions there is no hope. How do you plan for three
As a child in Camaguey, Arlene cared for her baby sister
years when so many things can happen?”
Jacquelín and even named her—after Mrs. Kennedy. At 11,
Jacquelín has become despondent. Arlene has developed
Arlene was allowed to travel to Spain to study. Later she
hives and stomach problems from the stress. “I will go to Cuba,
decided not to return to Cuba but to settle in the United
however I have to,” she insists. “The family is more powerful
States. She was 25 and her “baby sister” was 15 before the
than any law.” Meanwhile, she holds Lene close.
“Hope is everything” “La esperanza es todo”
L
ene (a la izquierda), su tía Arlene (a la derecha), y su madre
cuando el gobierno cubano le permitió visitar a Cuba. Entre
Jacquelín (en la foto pequeña) comparten la felicidad de
1979 y 2004, Arlene visitó a Jacquelín en Cuba cada año
su familia inusualmente unida. También comparten la pena
excepto uno. Después de cada visita, Jacquelín se deprecio-
de la separación. Lene—nombrada por su tía—vive con Arlene
naba, pero las hermanas se consolaban en el planeamiento
mientras estudia para llegar a ser una maestra. Su madre, la
de su próxima reunión, en un año. “La esperanza era todo,”
única hermana de Arlene, permanece en Cuba.
Arlene explica. “Ahora, con las restricciones nuevas, no hay
Como una niña en Camagüey, Arlene cuidaba a su hermana bebé Jacquelín y le dió el nombre de la señora Kennedy. A los
esperanza. ¿Cómo puedes planear por tres años cuando muchas cosas pueden pasar?”
11 años, Arlene se le permitió viajar a España para estudiar. Más
Jacquelín se ha desanimado. Arlene ha desarrollado ronchas y
tarde decidió no regresar a Cuba pero hacer su residencia en los
problemas estomacales por el estrés. “Me iré a Cuba comoqui-
Estados Unidos. Tenía 25 años y su hermanita tenía 15 años
era que sea,” ella insiste. “La familia es más poderosa que cualquier ley.” Mientas tanto, ella estrecha a Lene.
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“T he family is more
powerful than any law.”
Manolo, 82 Retired /Jubilado Miami, FL/ El Vedado anolo is ill. He has had cancer and radiation. He has a
M
he had been a ballet dancer, in the United States he picked
cardiac arrhythmia and an inoperable aortic aneurism
tomatoes, cleaned offices, and worked as a handyman.
which could kill him at any moment. He lives alone. He doesn’t
He married and divorced but never had more children.
want to die alone.
Manolo wants to return to Cuba to spend more time close to
In 1962, Manolo came to the United States, leaving two young
his children and grandchildren. But he traveled to Cuba in 2003
sons with their mother in Havana. He stayed. In 1979 when he
and during the three years he has had to wait, his health has
first returned to Cuba to visit, Manolo got to know his sons as
deteriorated. Now he’s not sure he is healthy enough to make
men. They now have children—his only grandchildren.
the trip. “If I travel and I die in the process,” he consoles
For years, Manolo lived in the United States very independently,
himself, “at least I will be buried in Cuba.”
only rarely returning to the island to see family. Whereas in Cuba
Now too infirm to travel
Ahora demasiado débil para viajar
M
anolo está enfermo. Tiene cáncer y ha recibido trata-
su familia. Mientras que en Cuba había sido un bailarín de ballet,
miento de radiación. Tiene una arritmia cardiaca y
en Los Estados Unidos el piscó tomates, limpió oficinas y trabajó
un aneurisma de la aorta inoperable que podía matarlo en
como un criado para tareas diversas. Se casó y se divorció pero
cualquier momento. Vive solo. No quiere morir solo.
nunca tuvo más hijos.
En 1962 Manolo vino a los Estados Unidos, dejando a sus dos
Manolo quiere regresar a Cuba para pasar más tiempo cerca de
hijos con su madre en la Habana. Se quedó. En 1979 cuando
sus hijos y sus nietos. Pero el viajó a Cuba en 2003 y durante
por primera vez regresó a Cuba para visitar, Manolo conoció
tres años ha tenido que esperar, su salud se ha deteriorado.
a sus hijos hechos hombres. Ellos tienen ahora hijos—sus
Ahora no está seguro si está lo suficientemente saludable
únicos nietos.
para emprender el viaje. “Si viajo y muero en el proceso,”
Por años Manolo vivió en los Estados Unidos muy independientemente, solamente regresaba raramente a la isla para ver a
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se consuela, “por lo menos me enterrarán en Cuba.”
“If I travel and I die in the process, at least I will be buried in Cuba.”
Mar a, 73 Retired /Jubilado Miami, FL/Pinar del Rio s a young woman in Cuba, María married a widower with
A
Now, María is forbidden from visiting her children or grandchil-
two small children, Caridad and Mario. She raised them
dren—ever. After the new restrictions went into effect, María
to adulthood as her own. They were both grown and married
received a letter from OFAC informing her that since she had
when María visited the United States in the early nineties and
not legally adopted her children, she could not legally visit them.
decided to stay.
María takes medicine for anxiety and depression and talks to
Caridad and Mario now have grown children of their own,
a therapist about her distress. The family separation is making
and María is a proud grandmother of six. She used to visit
her health problems worse. “Going to Cuba was my life.
her children and grandchildren in Cuba several times a year.
Now they’ve taken that from me!”
Even the anticipation of travel to see them lifted her spirits. “What I like to do best when I visit,” María shares, “is to just be in the house with all of my family.”
Can never visit her children
Jamás puede visitar a sus hijos
C
omo una mujer joven en Cuba, María se casó con un viudo
Ahora, a María se le ha prohibido visitar a sus hijos y a sus
con dos hijos pequeños, Caridad y Mario. Los crió como sus
nietos—nunca jamás. Después de que las restricciones nuevas
propios hijos hasta que fueron adultos. Ambos habían crecido
fueron puestas en efecto, María recibió una carta de la OFAC
y se habían casado cuando María visitó los Estados Unidos a
informándole que como ella no había adoptado a sus hijos no
principios de los noventa y decidió quedarse.
podía legalmente visitarles.
Caridad y Mario ahora tienen sus propios hijos crecidos y María
María toma medicina para la ansiedad y la depresión y habla
es una abuela orgullosa de seis. Solía visitar a sus hijos y nietos
con un terapista de su aflicción. La separación de la familia está
en Cuba varias veces al año. Aún la anticipación del viaje para
empeorando sus problemas de salud. “¡Ir a Cuba era mi vida!
verlos le levantaba su espíritu. “Lo que más me gusta hacer
Ahora me han arrebatado eso de mí.”
cuando visito,” María comparte, “es estar en la casa con mi familia, nada más.”
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“Going to Cuba was my life.
Now they’ve taken that from me!”
Marlene, 39 Activities director at nursing home/Director de actividades de una enfermería Miami, FL/Guantánamo arlene is the single mom of Liam who is 4. Her mother
M
Her mother needs an operation but is too frightened of surgery
who lives in Cuba is the only grandparent Liam knows.
to proceed. Marlene thinks that her mother would have the
He is permitted to visit her only once every three years. Marlene
surgery if Marlene could be there to support her and care for
wants more for her son. “I want his grandmother to be more
her sister during her mother’s convalescence. But Marlene fears
than a photograph.”
that if she travels to Cuba before three years have passed—and
Marlene worries about her mother who has been ill and has little
is caught and charged—she could lose custody of Liam.
family in Cuba to help her. She is 74 and cares for Marlene’s
“The restrictions make criminals out of people who just want
sister who is disabled. Both of them depend on Marlene for
to see their families.”
emotional support. Marlene used to visit them in Guantánamo every year. Now she cannot.
Restrictions create criminals
Las restricciones crean criminales
M
arlene es una madre soltera de Liam quien tiene 4 años.
Su madre necesita una operación pero tiene mucho miedo a la
Su madre que vive en Cuba es la única abuela que Liam
cirugía para proceder. Marlene piensa que su madre tendría la
conoce. Se le permite visitarla una vez cada tres años. Marlene
cirugía si Marlene pudiera estar allí para apoyarla y cuidar de su
quiere más para su hijo. “Quiero que su abuela sea más que
hermana durante la convalecencia de su madre. Pero Marlene
una foto.”
tiene miedo que si viaja a Cuba antes de que se cumplan los
Marlene está preocupada por su madre quien ha estado enferma y tiene una familia pequeña en Cuba para ayudarla. Ella tiene
tres años—y es sorprendida y enjuiciada—podría perder la custodia de Liam.
74 años y cuida a la hermana de Marlene que está incapacitada.
“Las restricciones hacen criminales de la gente que sólo
Ambas dependen del apoyo emocional de Marlene. Marlene
quiere ver a su familia.”
solía visitarlas a ellas en Guantánamo cada año. Ahora no puede.
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“The restrictions make criminals out of people who just want to see their families.”
Roberto, 66 Radio journalist/Periodista de radio Miami, FL/Tortora oberto came to the United States with his wife and son
R
Roberto is offended at the thought of having to ask permission
in 1980. His two other children stayed behind, a son who
to go to his own county. “If my granddaughter is going to be 15
is now 54 and a daughter who is 42. He has three grandchildren
and the party is in Havana, it is my right to go. That’s the way
in Cuba.
I see it.”
As a journalist, Roberto can legally travel to Cuba. He visits his
He also objects to the government’s deciding who “family” is.
family while there. He volunteers at a Miami radio station in part
”I cannot send a belt to a cousin because a cousin is not
to maintain access to his family. Still, the restrictions bother him
family…I am very upset because they pick who is my family
deeply. As an outspoken critic of the restrictions, he fears that
and who is not. My family is my family! Nobody has the
if he applied for the license required to make a family visit, he
right to tell me who is my family and who is not.”
might be denied because of his political views.
“They pick who is my family!” “¡Escogen quien es mi familia!”
R
oberto vino a los Estados Unidos con su esposa y su hijo en
A Roberto le ofende la idea de tener que pedir permiso para
1980. Sus otros dos hijos se quedaron, un hijo que tiene
ir a su propio país. “Si mi nieta va a cumplir quince años y
44 años y una hija que tiene 42 años. Tiene tres nietos en Cuba.
la fiesta es en la Habana, es mi derecho ir. Ese es el modo
Como periodista de radio puede viajar legalmente a Cuba. Visita
como yo lo veo.”
a su familia mientras está allí. Es voluntario de una estación de
También objeciona que el gobierno decida quién es “familia”.
radio en Miami en parte para mantener acceso a su familia.
“No puedo mandar un cinturón a un primo porque un primo no
Todavía, las restricciones le molestan hondamente. Como un
es familia… Estoy muy enojado porque éste escoge quién es
crítico vocal de las restricciones tiene miedo de que si solicita
mi familia y quién no es. ¡Mi familia es mi familia! Nadie tiene
una licencia requerida para hacer una visita a la familia, le pueda
el derecho de decirme quién es mi familia y quién no es.”
ser negada por sus puntos de vista políticos.
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“If my granddaughter is going to be 15
and the party is in Havana, it is my right to go.”
Luisa, 50 Director of multicultural youth center/Directora de un centro juvenil multicultural Takoma Park, MD/Cienfuegos fter Luisa left Cuba when she was six, she rarely saw her
A
“I want to visit my aunt, as mother would if she could, to carry
two aunts who stayed behind, but through her mother she
messages of support and love. But under the new restrictions,
has always felt strongly connected to them.
only my mother has the right to go. If I could travel, it would
Luisa’s mother is now 85 and lives in North Carolina. Two years ago, her mother’s oldest sister died. Her other sister, Yara, lives
give my mother consolation and allow her to know the true situation rather than live with an imagined one.
in Cienfuegos with a great niece. She is alert but fragile at 92.
“My mother finds comfort through prayer, and continues—
Luisa’s mother longs to visit Yara to see that she is being cared
as she has for 45 years—to write her sister each week. Yet
for and to touch her once more, but she is physically unable to
I know there is lost sleep and nights when she wonders,
make the trip. Luisa would like to go in her stead.
‘Did Yara have dinner tonight? Did they give her medicine? Is she cold?’”
Can’t comfort elderly mother
No puede consolar a una madre anciana
D
espués de que Luisa salió de Cuba, cuando tenía seis
“Quiero visitar a mi tía como mi madre lo habría hecho si ella
años, raramente veía a sus dos tías quienes se quedaron
pudiera, para llevarle mensajes de apoyo y amor. Pero bajo
allá, pero a través de su madre, ella se había sentido fuertemente
las nuevas restricciones solamente mi madre tiene el derecho
ligada a ellas.
de ir. Si yo pudiera viajar le daría a mi madre consolación y
La mamá de Luisa tiene ahora 85 años y vive en Carolina del Norte. Hace dos años su hermana mayor falleció. Su otra
le permitiría conocer la verdadera situación en lugar de vivir una imaginada.
hermana Yara vive en Cienfuegos con su nieta sobrina. Ella está
“Mi madre se consuela a través de la oración y continúa—
alerta pero frágil a los 92 años. La mamá de Luisa ansía visitar
como lo ha hecho por 45 años—escribiendo a su hermana
a Yara para ver que esté siendo cuidada y poder estrecharla una
cada semana. Todavía yo sé que ha perdido el sueño cuando
vez más, pero físicamente no puede hacer el viaje. A Luisa le
ella se pregunta, ‘¿Habrá comido Yara anoche? ¿Le habrán
gustaría ir en su lugar.
dado su medicina? ¿Tendrá frío?’”
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Nidia, 56 Housewife/Ama de casa Miami, FL/La Habana idia sits alone in front of her husband’s favorite chair, now
N
effect during their trip and they were ordered to return home
empty. Máximo died suddenly after a brief illness a month
after just four days. David was so upset at their departure that
before this photograph was taken. The worry that they shared
his blood pressure sky-rocketed and he was hospitalized.
about their family in Cuba, she now bears alone.
Now David awaits a kidney transplant, but a second illness—
In 1997, Nidia won the emigration lottery that allowed her and
hepatitis C—has left him too ill to risk the surgery. His wife
her husband to come to the United States. Their children David
struggles to care for him and their daughter while Nidia worries
and Loraina remained in Cuba with their spouses. In 2002, their
helplessly from afar.
son David became seriously ill with kidney disease. He was put on renal dialysis. Eager to see David and Loraina and their two grandchildren, Máximo and Nidia flew to Cuba in July 2004,
Before Máximo died, he pleaded. “The Cubans always help everyone. Can’t others help us now?”
planning a three-week visit. The new restrictions went into
“Help us now!“ “¡Ayúdenos ahora!”
N
idia se sienta sola enfrente de la silla favorita de su esposo,
pusieron en vigor durante su viaje y se les ordenó regresar a
ahora vacía. Máximo murió de repente después de una
casa después de cuatro días de estancia. David estaba tan
breve enfermedad un mes antes de que esta fotografía fuera
enojado de su salida que su presión arterial subió tantísimo
tomada. La preocupación que ambos compartían de su familia
que se le hospitalizó.
cubana, ahora la lleva sola.
Ahora David espera un transplante de riñón pero su segunda
En 1997, Nidia ganó la lotería de emigración que le permitió a
enfermedad—hepatitis C—lo ha dejado demasiado enfermo para
ella y a su esposo venir a los Estados Unidos. Sus hijos David y
arriesgar una cirugía. Su esposa lucha para cuidar a él y a su hija
Loraina permanecieron en Cuba con sus esposos. En 2002, su
mientras Nidia se preocupa sin poder hacer nada desde allá.
hijo David llegó a estar seriamente enfermo del riñón. Se le puso en un tratamiento de diálisis. Ansioso de ver a David y Loraina y sus dos nietos, Máximo y Nidia volaron a Cuba en julio 2004, y planearon una visita de tres semanas. Las restricciones nuevas se
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Antes de que Máximo muriera, imploraba. “Los cubanos siempre ayudan a todo el mundo. ¿Pueden otros ayudarnos ahora?”
“The Cubans always help everyone. Can’t others help us now?”
Eva, 34 Attorney/Abogada Baltimore, MD va (in the center) was raised in the United States
E
Eva encouraged her parents to visit Cuba with the exchange
hearing about her father’s childhood on a sugar farm
and watched them reconnect with their homeland after four
and her mother’s school-days in El Vedado. Her parents had
decades. Traveling with her parents, seeing Cuba through their
emigrated from Cuba before she was born.
eyes and listening to their stories increased Eva’s pride in her
When she was 22, Eva visited Cuba, driven by curiosity. She found her father’s childhood home. She took pictures of the ceramic tiles that her mother had treasured in her family’s
heritage. Through the educational exchange, Eva frequently visited Cuba with family members. Both of her sons were conceived in Cuba; both were baptized there.
house and made rubbings of family gravestones to share with
Eva’s family has no close relatives on the island. When educa-
her grandfather in Miami. Her Cuba experience was so
tional exchanges were curtailed in 2003, she lost legal access
compelling that she became the coordinator for a university
to Cuba. She longs for it to be otherwise. “I want to see my
educational exchange.
parents walking with their grandchildren in Cuba and showing them their world.”
Sharing Cuba builds family pride
Compartiendo Cuba edifica el orgullo familiar
E
va (en el centro) creció en los Estados Unidos, escuchando
Eva alentó a sus padres visitar a Cuba con el intercambio y
de la infancia de su padre en un rancho de cañaverales de
observó su reconexión con su patria después de cuatro décadas.
los días cuando la madre asistía a la escuela en El Vedado. Sus
Viajar con sus padres, ver Cuba a través de sus ojos y escuchar
padres habían emigrado de Cuba antes de que ella naciera.
sus historias, aumentó el orgullo de su herencia. A través del
Cuando tenía 22 años, Eva visitó a Cuba, manejada por la
intercambio cultural, Eva visitó frecuentemente a Cuba con
curiosidad. Encontró la casa de la infancia de su padre. Tomó
miembros de la familia. Ambos de sus hijos fueron concebidos
fotografías de los mosaicos que su mamá había atesorado en la
en Cuba; ambos fueron bautizados allá.
casa de su familia y calcó las lápidas sepulcrales para compartirlas con su abuelo en Miami. Su experiencia en Cuba fue tan apremiante que ella llegó a ser la coordinadora del intercambio educacional para la universidad.
La familia de Eva no tiene parientes cercanos en la isla pero cuando el intercambio educacional fue suspendido en 2003, perdió acceso legal a Cuba. Ella anhela para que esto sea lo contrario. “Quiero ver a mis padres caminando con sus nietos en Cuba y mostrándoles su mundo.”
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“I want to see my parents walking with their grandchildren in Cuba and showing them their world.”
Leandro, 42 Public school teacher/Maestro de una escuela pública Miami, FL/La Habana hen he was 16, Leandro was detained by the Havana
W
When Leandro visited Cuba in August 2004, his elderly parents
police as a suspected homosexual. He was offered the
were both well, but soon after he returned to the United
choice of spending three years in prison or leaving the country
States, his father became ill with cancer. Because of the new
for Peru or the United States. He chose to emigrate to the
restrictions, Leandro was unable to return to Cuba when he was
United States on the Mariel boatlift.
most needed. He couldn’t be with his father during his radiation
Leandro grew into adulthood living with relatives in the United States, but he never stopped missing his family in Havana. The Cuban government forbade the “Marielitos” from visiting their
treatment. He couldn’t help care for him during his final days. He couldn’t comfort his mother at his father’s funeral. He experienced his father’s illness and death only by telephone.
homeland until the early 1990s. Once Cuba permitted him to
Although Leandro loved his father deeply, he finds it hard to cry.
visit, Leandro traveled each year to see his family.
This puzzles him. Without the chance to say goodbye face-toface, his father’s death doesn’t feel quite real.
Missed father’s funeral
Ausente en el funeral de su padre
C
uando él tenía 16 años fue detenido por la policía de la
Cuando Leandro visitó a Cuba en agosto del 2004, sus padres
Habana bajo sospecha de ser homosexual. A él le dieron la
ancianos estaban ambos bien, pero tan pronto como regresó a
opción de pasar tres años en prisión o salir del país a Perú o a los
los Estados Unidos, su padre se enfermó de cáncer. Debido a las
Estados Unidos. El escogió emigrar a los Estados Unidos en el
nuevas restricciones Leandro no pudo regresar a Cuba cuando
embarque de Mariel.
se le necesitaba más. No pudo estar con su padre durante su
Leandro entró en la madurez viviendo con parientes en los Estados Unidos, pero nunca dejó de extrañar a su familia en la Habana. El gobierno cubano prohibió a los Marielitos visitar su patria hasta el principio de la década de los 90. Una vez que
tratamiento de radiación ni pudo cuidarle en sus últimos días. No pudo consolar a su madre en el funeral de su padre. Él experimentó la enfermedad y la muerte de su padre solamente a través del teléfono.
Cuba le permitió visitar el país, Leandro viajó cada año para ver
Aunque Leandro amaba a su padre profundamente, le cuesta
a su familia.
mucho trabajo llorar. Esto le desconcierta. Sin haber tenido, frente a frente, la oportunidad de decirle adiós, la muerte de su padre no la siente tan real.
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Raisa, 54 Owner of small family business/Dueña del negocio familiar Miami, FL/Guanabo hen Raisa’s parents told her they wanted their ashes
W
Raisa carried the ashes in her camera case. Her family was
taken to Cuba once they both died, she knew she
met in Cuba by her godfather, aunts, cousins and friends. They
would honor their wishes.
celebrated mass at the church where her parents had married,
Raisa came to the United States with her parents in 1962. By the time her father died in 2002 and her mother in 2004, there were no family members in Cuba to qualify for a legal family visit. To fulfill her parents’ wishes, Raisa, her husband, her brother and three children pursued travel with a religious group
then traveled to Guanabo where they gathered on the beach and shared memories of her parents. At dusk, surrounded by family and friends, Raisa and her brother mixed their father’s ashes with their mother’s and, with ashes and flowers, waded into the waters.
and disposed of the remains of their loved ones amidst the
Having to work around the restrictions burdened Raisa’s family
obligations of their tour.
in their time of grief. Raisa believes, “The government is playing games with people’s feelings.”
Burdened during time of grief
Agobiada durante su estado de aflicción
C
uando los padres de Raisa le dijeron que querían que sus
Raisa llevó las cenizas en el estuche de una cámara. Su familia
cenizas se llevaran a Cuba una vez que murieran, ella sabía
fue reunida en Cuba por su padrino, tías, primos y amigos. Celebraron misa en la iglesia donde sus padres se casaron,
que honraría sus deseos. Raisa vino a los Estados Unidos con sus padres en 1960. Para el tiempo en que su padre y su madre murieron en 2002 y en 2004, no había miembros de la familia en Cuba para una visita familiar legal. Para llevar a cabo los deseos de sus padres Raisa, su esposo, su hermano, y sus tres hijos perseguían el viaje con un
después viajaron a Guanabo donde se reunieron en la playa y compartieron sus recuerdos. Al anochecer, rodeados de la familia y amigos, Raisa y su hermano mezclaron las cenizas de su padre con las cenizas de su madre y flores y las esparcieron en las aguas.
grupo religioso. Así pudieran disponer de los restos de sus seres
El tener que bregar con las restricciones agobió a la familia
queridos a pesar de las obligaciones del viaje.
de Raisa durante su estado de aflicción. Raisa cree que, “El gobierno está jugando con los sentimientos de la gente.”
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“T he government is playing games with people’s feelings.”
Contributors JEANNE PARR LEMKAU is Professor Emerita of
NESTOR HERNÁNDEZ JR. was a Washington, DC,
Family Medicine and Community Health at Wright State
Cuban-American photographer who practiced and taught
University School of Medicine in Dayton, Ohio. She
his craft at the Capital Children’s Museum, the DC Public
served as a health educator in the Peace Corps in
Schools and the CentroNía multicultural learning center.
Nicaragua in the 1970s, has traveled widely on five
In 2002, the DC Commission on the Arts and Humani-
continents, taught global health and cross-cultural
ties honored him with an “Outstanding Emerging Artist”
psychology and developed international service-learning opportunities for
award. His work frequently took him abroad. In “Cuba Reflections: A Photo-
medical students. She has published over 70 articles in professional journals
graphic Journey” he documented his travels to the island between 1978 and
and trade publications concerning psychology, family medicine and Cuba.
2004. Until the 2004 restrictions ended his access to Cuba, he worked to
Currently she practices clinical psychology in Yellow Springs, Ohio, and is
link U.S. and Cuban photographers through cultural exchanges, exhibitions and
writing a book based on five months in Cuba learning about health care.
workshops. In Mali, he developed “Visual Griots,” a workshop linking American
She can be contacted at
[email protected].
and Malian photographers with primary school children. The U.S. tour of the Malian children’s photos culminated in an exhibit at the Smithsonian Institute
DAVID L. STRUG is Professor of Social Work at the
in 2007. Hernández exhibited regularly; and his images are included in
Wurzweiler School of Social Work of Yeshiva University
permanent collections and publications in Cuba, Ghana, Mali and the United
in New York City. He holds degrees in social work,
States. He died in May of 2006 after a brief illness. He was 46 years old.
anthropology and public health. He has conducted anthropological research in the Andes and Mexico. In
Juan E. González López is a Cuban-American
the United States, he has conducted social work research,
multi-media and performance artist based in Yellow
often with Hispanic populations. He has published articles on HIV/AIDS,
Springs, Ohio. He was one of the first generation of
Hispanic access to social services, social work in Cuba, and substance abuse.
artists born and educated in Cuba after the revolution.
He is co-editing a book, The Cuban Health Care System: An Enduring Model,
Although his work achieved early acclaim in Havana,
and has edited Alcohol Interventions: Historical and Socio-cultural Ap-
his provocative images quickly evoked strong opposition.
proaches. Dr. Strug practices psychotherapy in New York City and can be
In the 1980s, he was one of the founders of “Art-de” (arte y derecho /art
contacted at
[email protected].
and rights), a group of young artists whose performances were intended to foster dialogue about human rights and freedom of expression. His participa-
The narratives that accompany the photographs have been translated by
tion evoked government sanction, and he was expelled from the artist’s union.
VICTOR GARCÍA, Professor Emeritus of Spanish Literature at Antioch
Facing the prospect of imprisonment, he chose exile in 1991. Since arriving
College. Assistance with translation was provided by Jayden Sparenborg
in the United States, his art has focused on the cultural contradictions and
and Yessy González. Editorial assistance was provided by Paloma Dallas
political falsehoods of his adopted country. His work has appeared in numerous
and staff members of LAWGEF and WOLA.
exhibits and is included in permanent collections in the United States, Latin America and Europe.
The Latin America Working Group Education Fund (LAWGEF) is one of the nation’s longest-standing coalitions dedicated to foreign policy. The LAWGEF and its sister organization, the Latin America Working Group, carry out the coalition’s mission to encourage U.S. policies towards Latin America that promote human rights, justice and peace. LAWG represents the interests of over 60 major religious, humanitarian, grassroots, and policy organizations to decision makers in Washington and provides reliable guidance to policymakers who want their decisions to be grounded in human rights. For more information, log onto www.lawg.org. The Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) was founded in response to the brutal military coup d’ état against Chilean President Salvador Allende in 1973 and has played a key role in all major Washington policy debates over human rights in Latin America since. WOLA seeks to foster human rights, democracy and social and economic justice in Latin America, and a U.S. foreign policy that contributes to the achievement of those goals. For more information, log onto www.wola.org.
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Endnotes References: 1. Strug, D. and Lemkau, J. (in press). Psychological distress of Cuban Americans affected by restrictive U.S. travel policies. Journal of Progressive Human Services. 2. Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba. Retrieved May 8, 2007, from www.cafc.gov. 3. Pew Hispanic Center (2006). Cubans in the United States. Retrieved August 25, 2006, from http://pewhispanic.org/files/factsheets/. 4. Florida International University (2004). 2004 Cuba Poll. Retrieved March 28, 2007, from http://www.fiu.edu/orgs/ipor/cubapoll/index.html. 5. Santa Ana, O. (2006). Is there such a thing as Latino identity? Retrieved November 24, 2006, from http://www.pbs.org/americanfamily/latino2.html. 6. Bernal, G. and Shapiro, E. (1996). Cuban families. In M. McGoldrick, J. Giordano, and J. Pearce (Eds.), Ethnicity and family therapy 2nd Ed., (pp. 155-167). New York: Guilford. 7. Queralt, M. (1984). Understanding Cuban immigrants: A cultural perspective. Journal of the National Association of Social Workers, 29 (2), 115-121. 8. Chávez, L. (2005). Capitalism, God and a good cigar: Cuba enters the twenty-first century. Durham, NC: Duke University Press. 9. Pérez, L. (1992). Cuban Miami. In G. Grenier, and A. Stepick. (Eds.), Miami now: Immigration, ethnicity and social change (pp. 83-108). Gainesville, Fl: University of Florida Press. 10. Bernal, G. and Shapiro, E. (1996). Cuban families. In M. McGoldrick, J. Giordano, and J. Pearce (Eds.), Ethnicity and family therapy 2nd Ed., (pp. 155-167). New York: Guilford. 11. Wilkinson, D. (October 19, 2005). Families torn apart: The high cost of U.S. and Cuban travel restrictions. New York: Human Rights Watch.
Note on Cover Photograph: Julie, 85, was unable to visit her 88-year-old brother, Gabriel, when his health was failing,
nor could she attend his funeral after his death in October 2005. She has two siblings still in Cuba, whom she fears may die before she is eligible to see them again.
Photograph Credits: The following photographs were taken by Nestor Hernández Jr.: Julie, Maria del Carmen, Marisela, Jorge, Mario, Mari, Nestor Sr., Arlene, Maria, Marlene, Roberto, Luisa, Nidia, Leandro. The following photographs were taken by Juan E. González López: Marietta, Javier, Aidil, Silvia, Juan, Manolo, Eva, Raisa. The photograph of Carlos was taken by Washington Post photographer Sora Devore for her friend Nestor. Rick Reinhart took the photograph of Nestor Hernández Jr. that appears on the dedication page.
L o v e , L o s s a n d L o n gi n g
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Latin America Working Group Education Fund (LAWGEF) 424 C Street, NE | Washington, DC 20002
www.lawg.org
Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) 1630 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 200 | Washington, DC 20009
www.wola.org
